Players participating in Freestyle Chess Tour not required to sign waiver: Fide

Players participating in Freestyle Chess Tour not required to sign waiver: Fide

Feb 04, 2025 10:03 PM IST

Fide has been unequivocal about not wanting to part with its sole authority over the ‘World Championship’ title

Bengaluru: In a statement on Tuesday, the world chess governing body, Fide, said that since the organizers of the ‘Freestyle Chess Tour’ have done away with all references to the “World Championship” title from its regulations, players wishing to participate in the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour this year are no longer required to sign a waiver note.

The feud between Fide and the organisers of the Magnus Carlsen-led Freestyle Chess has been brewing for months. (AP)
The feud between Fide and the organisers of the Magnus Carlsen-led Freestyle Chess has been brewing for months. (AP)

Earlier Fide had stipulated that players wishing to participate in the 2025 Freestyle Chess Tour sign a waiver note by February 4 to remain eligible for the official World Championship cycle. The waiver note was one that provided players with a one-off exception from their existing contractual obligations towards Fide. In light of Freestyle Chess organisers doing away with ‘World Championship’ references for now, the waiver note is no longer necessary.

The feud between Fide and the organisers of the Magnus Carlsen-led Freestyle Chess has been brewing for months with recent negotiations breaking down. Fide has been unequivocal about not wanting to part with its sole authority over the ‘World Championship’ title, one that Freestyle Chess organisers have been pushing to award its Tour winner at the end of the year.

“I think a tournament series with the very best players in the world for very good money – there’s every reason for the winner of that tournament to be called world champion,” Carlsen was quoted saying on Take Take Take. It’s a bit like saying ATP, Fifa and ICC should be okay with a privately-funded and organised tournament running a ‘Grand Slam’ or a ‘World Cup’.

Earlier, Carlsen had accused Fide of ‘coercion of players, misuse of power and broken promises.’ “Fide president Dvorkovich to convince me to play the world rapid and blitz in New York, you wrote Dec 19th to my father: Just want to pass a message to you and Magnus that whatever happens between Fide and Freestyle in terms of recognition, players will not be affected in any way. They can decide on their own and Fide will not take any negative action…By forcing players to sign an unacceptable waiver you have reneged on your promise…Will you resign?”

Dvorkovich and Fide appear to have kept their half of the promise by doing away with the stipulation of players being required to sign a waiver note. The standoff between both sides though isn’t over with German entrepreneur and Freestyle Chess promoter Jan Buettner threatening to take legal recourse in his open letter on Monday.

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